Movie Info
Movie Name: House of Frankenstein
Studio: Universal Studios
Genre(s): Horror/B-Movie
Release Date(s): December 1, 1944
MPAA Rating: Not Rated
Next time I give you the “kill him” signal try to do it less creepy and more casual
Dr. Gustav Niemann (Boris Karloff) has a desire to follow in Frankenstein’s footsteps and has been institutionalized as a mad scientist as a result. Breaking free with a hunchback named Daniel (J. Carrol Naish), Dr. Niemann hides under the cover a circus transporting the body of Dracula (John Carradine). Freeing Dracula as a distraction, Dr. Niemann and the hunchback speed to Frankenstein’s lab in the hopes of finding the key to Frankenstein’s experiments…but find the Monster (Glenn Strange) and the Wolf Man (Lon Chaney, Jr.) instead.
Directed by Erle C. Kenton, House of Frankenstein is a mash-up Universal monster movie at the end of the Universal monster boom. The film follows Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man from 1943.
Why am I in this movie?
House of Frankenstein is a kid’s dream “Monster-Mash” type film. Not only do you get Frankenstein (who doesn’t show up until near the end of the movie), but you get Dracula and the Wolf Man (plus as the poster indicates “The Hunchback” and “the Mad Scientist”)…unfortunately, it isn’t very good.
The story of House of Frankenstein is virtually non-existent. The only continuing theme is that Boris Karloff wants to do Frankenstein’s experiments and the Hunchback wants a new body. The first half of the film deals with Dracula and a husband and wife, and then the film completely changes cast and settings for the second half which has the Wolf Man, the Frankenstein Monster, and a gypsy woman named Ilonka (Elena Verdugo). The film makes no effort to bring the two halves together and it feels like a sheer marketing ploy to make money.
Let’s go wolfing now!
The acting is on par with the other Universal horror films. Unfortunately, due to an obligation, Bela Lugosi wasn’t able to play Dracula (though I do like Carradine in the role). I also find it rather ironic that Boris Karloff wants to follow in Frankenstein’s footsteps since he was the iconic Monster. J. Carrol Naish is rather sympathetic as the hunchback though I’m rather surprised Elena Verdugo’s character wasn’t named Esmeralda to further tie into The Hunchback of Notre Dame.
I still love the Wolf Man, the Frankenstein Monster, and Dracula so I have a hard time faulting the looks although the movies are always filled with continuity errors. The movie was originally going to include even more monsters, but fortunately, the mummy and other rumored participants were left out of the already loaded script.
Dude…you look different…again
House of Frankenstein isn’t good, but honestly, many of the later monster movies weren’t very good and are only “fun” shades of past movies. The multiple character movie idea continued on after this and still continues today (I mean The Expendables is essentially the House of Frankenstein of action films). House of Frankenstein was followed by House of Dracula in 1945.
Related Links:
The Bride of Frankenstein (1935)
The Ghost of Frankenstein (1942)
Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man (1943)
Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948)
